Book Signing: Lesson Learned and Cool Stuff

 

I’ve been on the reader side of the table many times in my life.

A little nervous. A little excited. Trying to think of something to say to a favorite author that doesn’t sound absurd.

Glowing and happy as I approach the signing table of someone I know. Delighting in their accomplishment and proud to know them.

I never thought of what it’s like to be on the other side of the table, not even when I was getting ready for my book release party. I was far too busy fretting about whether the books and swag would arrive on time or if I forgot to invite anyone to think about actually being in that seat on the other side of the table.

The books arrived and the swag was perfect.

I even had someone there to handle the purchasing side of things. All I had to do was talk to people and sign books. Easy right?

Ever seen a deer in the headlights?

Yep. That’s how I felt, which wasn’t a real problem until it came time to write something in the books. I had no idea what to write. I hadn’t thought about that part of it. Not once. To be fair, I think it’s harder when you know a lot of the people buying the books because you want to say something personal to each of them, but having some vague notion of what to write would have made it so much easier.

So this is my advice to the new authors out there. Put time in on swag and ordering book copies and arranging all the details (better if you can delegate some of that), but also spend time coming up with a plan for how your want to sign those books so that you don’t have to try to engage your brain when you feel like a deer in the headlights (this is especially important for true introverts).

For all of you on the other side of the table, be gentle.

Now for a few of the fun things from the book release party.

An amazing bag gifted to me by the extremely talented Ann of Romany Rapture.

This fantastic pendant gifted to me by another incredibly talented woman, Lora of London Particulars.

And some great bouquets from more lovely people.

Happy book signing, regardless of what side of the table you're on!

In the Interim

The last week has been a little crazy with adjusting to the idea of having a book out, trying to keep track of social media and writing up guest blog posts and interviews. Outside of that, I've been trying to edit the next book,

get Teagan established with a vet in our new town,

get my horses in to a vet for their dental appointment,

prepare for a book release party,

and manage all the other little details of life (like going to urgent care for a cat bite). I hope to have something more fun up on my blog soon, but in the interim, if you're curious about my book, The Girl and the Clockwork Cat, you can follow some of the reviews and guest posts on my blog tour here managed by the fabulous YA Bound Book Tours.

Happy adventuring!

Mercy and Some Books

In the name of mercy, I've decided to do a quick post so that the first thing you see when you come here isn't a sad post about the loss of my old Thomas kitty. If you haven't read it already, you should read I Remember You so that you can properly appreciate how merciful I am.

However, because I am also super busy editing and writing and...you know, author-like stuff, I'm only going to take a minute to tell you about upcoming books from a couple of authors you should have on your watch list.

The Book of Kindly Deaths

For the middle-grade crowd, I offer you an upcoming dark tale by the mysterious Eldritch Black.

The Book of Kindly Deaths is coming out this year through Spencer Hill Press. While you wait, enjoy his creepy Wall of Weird or visit his Books page for links to other stories available through Amazon.com.

The Masked Songbird

For the adult crowd, a quirky superheroine(?) novel by Emmie Mears.

The Masked Songbird (Scottish Songbird, #1) will also be released this year by Harlequin E. Learn more about it and read some of Emmie's shorter works on her Books page.

The Girl and the Clockwork Cat

Lastly, my debut novel will be coming out through Entangled Teen. More on that (including official cover art and such) as it comes along, but you can add The Girl and the Clockwork Cat to your Goodreads list now if you want (which you do, right?).

Happy reading!

Book Review: Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff

You might think it was the awesome cover art or the kickass idea of a Japanese inspired steampunk novel that drew me to Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff, but I can honestly say that it was something else entirely. What drew me to the novel was the author himself. I stumbled upon Jay on Twitter and followed the link to his blog. As soon as I started reading, Jay’s cheeky humor and witty turn of phrase had me grinning like a fool. I knew immediately that, if his writing voice carried even a tiny glimmer of the voice that came across in his blog, I would enjoy reading his book. Unfortunately, the book wasn’t coming out in the U.S. until September 18th, but with a little persistence pursuing a variety of possibilities, I eventually obtained an advanced reader copy (ARC).

There is one aspect of the book I adored that not everyone may love (though I think anyone could appreciate the refreshing departure from the norm). The book is Japanese inspired, so the cultural influences, martial aspects, and array of Japanese names/words all sang to that part of me that is in love with Japanese martial arts, language, and history. I stumbled over name pronunciation less in this book than I do in a lot of fantasy and science fiction, which was surprisingly pleasant.

[hulu id=mxtzhbxze7q_xxejzqs4jw width=512 height=288]

Yes, that was really awful. Stormdancer has nothing in common with this.

Whether or not you are a fan of the Japanese inspired aspects of the novel, however, it still has plenty for you to enjoy.

Jay weaves us into his dark, gritty world with a captivating tapestry of description that blossoms around the characters as they move through the story. With every sentence, the world becomes more vivid and real. I started the story floundering along, gazing in wonder at this foreign world, then, before I knew what had happened, I was choking down poisoned air with the hiss and clank of steam-powered machinery moving around me.

The protagonist, Yukiko, is one of the best strong females characters I’ve read. She’s smart, determined, a bit stubborn, and not once does she give in and become the damsel in distress that so many heroines seem to melt into at some point, not even when facing that samurai with the amazing green eyes. At the same time, she is still very obviously female, something that can become lost when an author is too intent on making their women strong.

Complex relationships, like the setting, slowly blossom throughout the story. At every turn, the characters reveal new depths to their personalities through their interactions with the people and the world around them. Yukiko’s burgeoning relationship with the thunder tiger, Buruu, and the way that relationship changes them both is worth the price of admission by itself, but you also get deeper and deeper glimpses into Yukiko’s tumultuous relationship with her father and their tragic past that make it impossible not to feel for these characters. Jay extends that complexity of character down to even the bit players in the story, bringing the world to life through their emotions and experiences.

At the end, there were still many unanswered questions. Enough to make me want to know what happens next and look forward to rejoining the characters in the second book, but I was satisfied with the ending Jay gives this first book in his trilogy.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who ever had an itch to fly on a griffon’s back (seriously, if you don’t think that’d be cool, there’s something wrong with you). Or perhaps you can be enticed by the urge to wield a chainsaw katana (not joking here). In case you aren't convinced, here is the book trailer for Stormdancer, releasing September 18th in the US and September 13th in the UK.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mei6yRz7pTU]

Happy reading!

Book Review: Praise of Motherhood

I haven't done many book reviews and I don't read a lot of nonfiction so I'm stepping out of my comfort zone in a couple of ways with this post. Just so you don't get the wrong idea when I start picking at some of the things I didn't like about Praise of Motherhood by Phil Jourdan, I want to say up front that I enjoyed this book. I think my biggest complaint wasn't with content, or writing, or any of those things, but with the presentation of the book. Specifically, the title and back cover blurb.

The title, Praise of Motherhood, led me to think it was about one of two things.

1) It was about the challenges of being a mother, perhaps written from the perspective of a dad/husband given the author's name, in which case, I, as a non-parent, could see little reason to read it.

OR

2) It was about how awesome mothers are, in which case, I already know how unbelievably awesome my Mom is and I don't need a book to tell me.

If a friend hadn’t handed me this book, I would never have picked it up from the title. In my personal opinion, the title pre-limits the audience in an unfortunate way.

On to the back cover blurb:

When Phil Jourdan's mother died suddenly in 2009, she left behind a legacy of kindness and charity — but she also left unanswered some troubling questions. Was she, as she once claimed, a spy? Had she suffered more profoundly as a woman and parent than she'd let on?

Jourdan's recollections of his struggles with psychosis, and his reconstructions of conversations with his enigmatic mother, form the core of this memoir. Psychoanalysis, poetry and confession all merge to tell the story of an ordinary woman whose death turned her into a symbol for extraordinary motherhood.

The 'troubling questions' intimated in the blurb, a large part of what intrigued me about the book as someone who usually reads fiction, never played a significant part in the narrative nor were they, in my opinion, ever truly given an answer. I didn't see this as a flaw in the book, but rather a flaw in the focus of the blurb.

Additionally, while Praise of Motherhood did explore the author's relationship with his mother, it didn't strike me as a story about the author's mother. She was a constant throughout the narrative, an anchor in his life and a woman who really didn't seem know what to do about or for her troubled son, but who stood by him regardless. I think she was a heroic figure, but I never experienced a deep connection to or understanding of her life the way I did the author's. It was, for me, more about the author's journey prior to his mother’s death and his struggle to come to terms with losing her.

When I first started reading Praise of Motherhood, I stumbled over the writing style/voice of the author, but developed a deep appreciation for it by the end of the first chapter. Phil Jourdan's writing takes on an almost poetic quality, the ideas flowing smoothly so that you soon find yourself swept helplessly along like a leaf caught in a river's current. It's deceptively easy to coast from one chapter to the next. In places, I would even call the writing beautiful.

The author himself comes across as a sometimes dark, sometimes gentle, often lost and troubled soul. The story he tells leads you through many turbulent years of his youth and occasionally slips into creative fiction passages that speculate upon his mother's life and her views.

Would I recommend Praise of Motherhood?

That's a complicated question.

There are things about Jourdan's story that I found captivating because of my long-time interest in psychology. Would someone who didn't share that interest be intrigued by those aspects of the book? I can't say.

There are places I truly sympathized as someone who has lost a parent. Would someone who hadn't experienced such a loss relate as well? I don't know.

There are glimpses of a brilliant imagination that I enjoyed as a reader and writer of fiction. Would everyone enjoy that aspect? They might.

Praise of Motherhood is a fascinating and candid exploration of the author's life and struggle to cope with the passing of the one person who was always there for him. It's a fast read and anyone intrigued by any aspect of the story would not be ill-served by picking it up. Phil Jourdan truly brings his journey to life for his reader and it's a riveting journey.

Visit the Goodreads page for Praise of Motherhood to read more reviews and for links to purchase or visit Phil Jourdan's blog.

Happy reading!

Basking in the Sunshine

This has been a crazy month. I’ve been traveling with family and have suffered from a heinous cold turned sinus infection, but I’ll get into that more later in my One New Thing post for June. I’ve also picked up a literary agent, but I’ll go into that more in my upcoming post about how I got a literary agent. This post is just a little fluffy one about my nomination for the Sunshine Award from the wonderful writer Fabio Bueno, an award that is rather appropriate for this month so far in spite of the nasty illness. Thanks Fabio!

Here are the rules:

• Include the award logo in the post.
• Link back and thank those that nominated me.
• Answer 10 random questions about myself and/or tell seven random facts.
• Nominate 10 other bloggers and link them to the award in their comments section.

So here goes. More random information about me that you probably weren’t holding your breath for:

1. What’s one of your favorite books from childhood? Tailchaser’s Song by Tad Williams. To be honest, it’s been so long since I read it that I don’t even remember why I love this book. I just know that it’s one of those books I itch to read again every time I think about it.

2. What are you reading? I’m reading Fullmetal Alchemist book one by Hiromu Arakawa in Japanese. I loved the Fullmetal Alchemist anime series so I figured the manga would be a good first step into reading a book in Japanese. I’m also reading A Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi.

3. Which do you prefer, Facebook or Twitter? I’m honestly more of a twitter fan. I can get and give more information faster there, but I tend to interact more with my close friends on Facebook, so it's something of a draw.

4. Favorite thing to do in your free time? Video games or kayaking or horse riding or… well, lots of things.

5. Favorite season? I like most seasons for various reasons (how poetic), but living in Seattle predisposes me to summer because there is a bit less rain.

6. Favorite magazine? I don’t really read magazines much.

7. What is your favorite animal? Snow leopard. I'm a long-time supporter of the Snow Leopard Trust.

8. Favorite teacher (and why)? I had a number of great teachers, but I’d have to say that my sixth grade teacher, Mr. Johnson, was probably the best simply because he was the first to encourage me in my book writing.

9. What is your favorite number? Can I have three? I really like 3, 7, and 13.

10. Do you prefer reading short stories or novels? Novels. I pick up a short story now and then, but I like something longer that I can become deeply immersed in.

This time I’m going to break the rules and just say that I would love to hear from all of you. What is your favorite season, teacher, etc.? If you haven’t received the Sunshine Award and would like to, say so in the comments and I slip in a list with you on it.

Happy sunshine!

What's Missing in e-Books or Pizza without Black Olives

I’ve long begrudged the rising popularity of eBooks and e-Readers and have struggled with the exact reason why they evoke such a visceral reaction in me. For some time I’ve tried to explain it away with simply a love of print books or the desire to see my work in print, but it wasn’t until I stumbled upon this article, The Objects of Our Obsession: On the E vs. P Debate, that it suddenly hit me. An epiphany if you will. First and foremost, I greatly appreciate the many benefits of e-readers, such as their convenience for travel and that they make it easier for people like my grandma to continue reading books even though she needs larger font and can no longer hold a thick book comfortably due to arthritis. Bravo for those things and for the lack of dead trees required in the process of getting the books to consumers. (I have mixed feelings about the new age of publishing in which anyone can publish their novel as an e-book, but that's a different rant.)

Something that I’ve always understood about my dislike for e-readers is the missing sensory experience. It’s like eating pizza without black olives. You may not agree, but I think eating pizza without black olives is like eating greasy cardboard. Add black olives and it gains a burst of bright new flavor, turning it into a more engaging dining experience. Yum! Reading a paper book is similarly more engaging than reading an e-book. You get the tactile experience of feeling the paper between your fingers, the rustle of the pages turning, and the smell of ink and paper brought together in blissful harmony (or something like that). You get a full sensory experience beyond just the text you’re reading and I love that, but the lack of all that isn’t what really gets to me.

I think there is an amazing social experience that is becoming lost with the advent of e-readers. One of my favorite things about going to a friend’s house for the first time is seeing what books they have on their shelves. You can learn a lot about people from their books (and the creepy assassin armor they wear). A person's book collection is a great way to start up myriad conversations, comparing notes on books you’ve both read or discussing books you haven’t read that might interest you. It really is an immersive social experience and no, I don’t think sites like Goodreads can take the place of that. Seriously folks, we need to have a little in person interaction occasionally (also a different rant), which leads me to my next complaint.

I’ll admit that it’s cool being able download hundreds of books on your e-reader and have them waiting in queue for you (not that I ever expect to catch up with the print pile I have already). Shopping that way also saves you from the burden of leaving your self-inflicted isolation and actually interacting with real people in a real store (yes, that was sarcastic). However, in a world bursting with technology, reading a print book strikes me as a delicious way to escape the constant hum of electronics and the ever-present screens that fill our lives. It is a totally disconnected experience. I love that.

I know I’m dragging my feet on something that is inevitable and I too will probably have an e-reader someday, but not yet. Right now, I’d rather be Luddite as far as reading goes. I write my books on a screen. I prefer to read them on paper, thank you very much.

Happy reading!

Have you embraced the e-reading age? Why or why not?

Are Authors Killing Each Other with Kindness?

It’s hard to succeed as an author. It always has been, but in today’s environment, we can find communities of authors under every virtual rock supporting and encouraging one another. It’s a beautiful thing. We don’t have to struggle through the grind of writing, editing, and publishing alone. We can share our struggles, doubts, and successes with each other on our blogs, Twitter, Facebook groups, and so many other places. I could wax poetic for hours about how awesome my fellow authors are and it would be true.

However…

Yes, you knew there was a shoe about to be dropped.

I’ve seen many cases where this mutual support has gone too far. I see people casually handing out five-star ratings and reviews for fellow authors in the name of supporting them and, in some cases, expecting the same in return. A lot of the time, this is done without reading the books being rated. Though innocent enough from the point of view of the struggling author, there can be dire and potentially career ending repercussions to consider.

Let’s take this from the top.

What Do Those Five Stars Really Mean?

When we hand out a five-star rating or review, we are essentially telling the world that this book or story is virtually flawless. The writing shines. The plot and subplots are solid and free of holes or contradictions. The characters come alive. The book is well-edited, not riddled with spelling or grammatical errors. The list goes on.

How many books have you actually read that truly reach that lofty status?

I’m willing to guess not many. I can’t think of a single book that is perfect and I’ve only ever five starred books I thought were so exceptional in most ways that the few flaws didn’t matter. These books are so captivating I could forego food and sleep to keep reading.

If I give a five-star rating or review to someone because I want to support them even though I haven’t read the book or have read the book and it isn’t really as good as all that, I am lying.

Who are we lying to when we give a dishonest review?

The reader. We are lying to the very people we want to draw in and convince to buy our books. The people whose trust we most need to gain.

Supporting Our Customers.

As authors, we need our readers. They are the ones who will ultimately determine our success. When we give a five-star rating or review as a favor to another author, we are lying to their readers. When we accept the same from another author, we are letting them lie to our readers (unless, of course, the book actually is perfect).

This is also true if we pay someone to give us five stars (see Mike Cooper’s post on Why Amazon Reviews Are Not Helpful or this New York Times article In a Race to Out-Rave, 5-Star Web Reviews Go for $5). We are paying someone to lie to our customers for us. Tell me how that can possibly be a good thing.

Who does this hurt?

In the end, it hurts the author. When a reader picks up a book and gives up their valuable time to read it because it has a five-star rating or review then discovers that the editing was atrocious or the plot was full of holes or the writing was simply immature and in need of polish, they feel betrayed. That reader isn’t going to recommend the author to friends and family or read other books by that author. Worse yet, they may leave a scathing review in response because they are rightfully pissed off. Get too many of those and your dreams of being a successful author may go down in flames.

One of the most avid readers I know recently told me that she doesn’t trust book reviews on Amazon anymore for this very reason. When readers stop trusting reviews, reviews become meaningless. Readers will turn to safer options such as familiar authors and publishers or recommendations from trusted friends. Folks, our customers are starting not to trust us already and it hurts all of us.

What can we do?

We have to put our best work out there.

Nobody forced you to write a book. You started with a vision. You put in the time and effort to write it. Why would you sell that work or yourself short? Make that book the best damned book it can be. Invest in an editor. Find a critique group or other people around you who are willing to read it and give real feedback. Then polish, polish, polish until it’s a book you would put in front of a real reviewer without fear.

If you aren’t confident that your book can earn good reviews, then it isn’t ready for publication yet. Your gut is telling you that something still needs work. Figure out what that is and fix it. Then, when the book is really ready…

There are book bloggers and reviewers coming out of the woodwork like termites. Book reviewers are all over the blogosphere and Twitter. There are even blogs dedicated to listing book blogs like the Book Blogger Directory. Put out the effort to contact these people. Find reviewers and even fellow authors who will actually read the book and give you honest reviews. Give them free copies to work with. It’s an investment in your career.

Those reviews might not be five stars and they will probably have some criticisms. That’s okay. It’s part of the job. Not everyone is going to love your work. Nothing will ever change that. If you’re afraid your gentle soul can’t handle criticism, you’re in the wrong line of work. I've gotten some brutal feedback from editors in the past and I know how criticism hurts. I've also gotten fan mail from people who really loved something I wrote. It's worth the pain. Put a stick between your teeth, bite down, and take it. If you learn to move past the initial sting, you can find gems of wisdom in the less positive reviews that will help you grow as an author and make the next book even better (which is another powerful benefit we rob each other of when we don’t give each other honest reviews).

If this is your passion, your dream, then there will be a next book and you don’t want jaded readers immediately snubbing your work because they don’t trust you.

Bottom line:

What seems like an innocent favor can turn into the equivalent of a gunshot to the head for an author’s long-term career. False reviews hurt all authors. If it was worth your time and effort to write a book, it is also worth your time and effort to cultivate an audience for that book that will trust you and look forward to reading more. Seek out honest opinions and strong feedback and your work will always be better for it.

Fun with Reading: Eleven Questions

I have several blog posts I want to get out, but it seems as if there is never enough time to write them. Today is no exception. Fortunately, YA and middle grade writer Tami Clayton recently tagged me in the Eleven Questions game, which gets me off the hook for a few days on getting my other blog posts written. Thanks Tami! Here are the game rules:

1. Post the rules.
2. Answer the questions.
3. Pass the questions on to eleven other bloggers by tagging and linking to them in our post.
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged.

Now for the questions.

1. If you could live in a fictional world, where would that be?

If the question said fictional universe, I might go for traveling around discovering new places in the universe of Dan Simmons' Hyperion or C.S. Friedman’s In Conquest Born. If I have to choose one world, however, then I would probably go with Anne McCaffrey’s Pern. How can you pass up riding a dragon?

2. Do you prefer to read Fiction or non-fiction?

Fiction. I only tend to read non-fiction when I am researching for one of my books (which is fairly often, now that I think about it).

3. Do you read in noisy or quiet places?

I am definitely a quiet place reader. If there is a lot of background noise, like on an airplane, then I need an exceptionally good book or some headphones. I can read with music playing.

4. Do reviews influence your choice of reads?

I don’t have a lot of time to read, so I am more likely to go pick up a book that gets good reviews from people who have similar tastes on places like Goodreads.

5. Audio books or paperbacks?

Paperback. I don’t drive enough to do audiobooks and I don’t tend to pay as much attention to them if I can be doing something else. A paperback occupies my hands so I can’t be doing other things.

6. What was the first book you remember reading?

That is hard. If we get out of, say, Golden Books, then the first book I can really remember the author and title of was Birth of the Firebringer by Meredith Ann Pierce. I read a lot before that. That one just stuck with me because it gave me my first book idea and started me writing.

7. Favorite author?

I don’t know that I have one favorite author. I think George R.R. Martin is one of the most talented authors in recent history. I have always loved the work of C.S. Friedman and she is a role model of mine as a woman who has made a name for herself in both science fiction and fantasy writing. Meredith Ann Pierce will always have a special place in my heart for starting me off on this insane journey.

8. Classic or Modern Novels?

I read mostly modern fantasy and science fiction, though I do branch out to other fiction based on recommendations and occasional whims. Periodically I dive into our big collection of classics as well.

9. Have you ever met your favorite author?

Sadly, I haven’t met any of the favorites on my list.

10. Book groups or solitary reading?

I read alone. Book groups would be driven mad by my pace. It takes me a while, since I only read at breakfast. Although, every now and then, when something really grabs me by the throat, I will read it in a day or two.

11. If you could read only one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?

That is a hard question, especially given how much of what I read is written in trilogies. I’m going to cheat just a little here, since I have this trilogy in a single book, and pick The Last Herald-Mage trilogy by Mercedes Lackey. Read it. It is amazing.

I’m going to cheat again and skip the tagging of 11 more people because most of the people in my circles seem to have already been tagged. However, if you’d like a tag, I’d love to see your answers, so let me know in the comments and I’ll throw in a tag section later.

What book would you read for the rest of your life?

Happy reading!

A Little Bit of Lucky?

The Lucky 7 Meme has been running around my blogging circles and finally struck me, twice, thanks to the lovely authors Jodi Lea Stewart and Alina Sayre. As it is the 27^th today, it seemed like a good day to post my contribution. Here are the rules of the game:

1. Go to page 77 of your current MS/WIP (If you don’t yet have 77 pages of your current work in progress completed, just choose the first seven sentences.) 2. Go to line 7 3. Copy down the next 7 lines, sentences, or paragraphs, and post them as they’re written. 4. Tag 7 authors, and let them know.

My current novel is a somewhat dark fantasy that actually has no title yet. I have to confess that the lines I am using are from page 7 because page 77 is in the heart of a section I am currently hacking up and reworking (and yes, there are actually 9 lines from the manuscript, but I couldn’t stand ending in the middle of a paragraph).

     “Few Endless warriors could have blocked that strike. You waste yourself in remembrance.” The master spun and began to walk away. “Go back to the ranks and fight with the temporal warriors. You are too broken to be Endless.”

     Deynas dropped to his knees with the sinking of his heart. It could not end this way. “Master Kochan!”

     Kochan stopped at the foot of the temple steps. He didn’t turn.

     Deynas laid his staff on the ground and bowed before it. “Master Kochan, I fight to atone for my failure. I fight to honor the memory of Argus-ra. I want to be to the people what she was. If this is a flawed purpose, then you are right, I cannot be Endless.”

Now for the tagging of the next 7 lucky folks!

• Simon Tall
• Kristin McFarland
• Patricia Caviglia
• Margaret Miller
• Robert "Sharky" Pruneda
• Tod McCoy
• Linda Adams

Happy Writing!